69 



INFLAMMATION OF THE EYE. 



InHammatiou of the eye, called in human noso- 

 logy ophthalmia, and among farriers lunatic, is a very 

 common disease among horses, and a very destructive 

 one to the organ it attacks. That it is brought on 

 by some alteration from a common or natural state 

 is certain, as the disease is little observed but where 

 horses live nearly a life of art. Draught horses are 

 particularly subject to this disease, apparently from 

 the pressure of the collar preventing the free return 

 of the blood from the head. All horses subjected to 

 violent exercise are liable to it, because, under any 

 violent exertion, the breath is held, which prevents 

 the passage of blood through the right side of the 

 heart, and hence it accumulates in the head. Young 

 horses are more subject than old, because their ves- 

 sels are incapable of resisting the increased impetus of 

 the blood. The acrid urine confined in hot siablcs 

 is a very general cause of the disease. Want of ex- 

 ercise and too full feeding have a great share in the 

 production of the complaint. When the inflamma- 

 tion of a horse's eyes recurs every five or six weeks, 

 the farriers call it lunatic, thinking the moon has 

 'some influence over the complaint. Sometimes one 

 eye only is inflamed ; at otJiers both ; and somethnes 

 they are alternately so. After one or both eyes have 

 had repeated attacks of this kind, there appear some 

 specks in the centre, or within the pupil : these gra- 

 dually increase; and though the horse may have no 

 more inflammation, yet he goes blind, having, what 

 is termed, a cataract. 



The cure is seldom permanent ; it should, how- 

 ever, be attempted by clean stables, bleec'icg ma- 



